intro business ch. 9

continuous process

a production process in which long production runs turn out finished goods over time

statistical process control (SPC)

the process of taking statistical samples of product components at each stage of the production process and plotting those results on a graph. any variances from quality standards are recognized and can be corrected if beyond the set standards

statistical quality control (SQC)

the process some mangers use to continually monitor all phases of the production process to assure that quality is being built into the product from the beginning

lean manufacturing

the production of goods using less of everything compared to mass production

production management

the term used to describe all the activities managers do to help their firms create goods

computer-integrated manufacturing (CIM)

the uniting of computer-aided design with computer-aided manufacturing

compute-aided design (CAD)

the use of computers in the design of products

ISO 14000

a collection of the best practices for manageing an organizations impact on the environment

operations management

a specialized area in management that converts or transforms resources (including human resources) into goods and services

Gantt chart

bar chart showing production managers what projects are being worked on and what stage they are in at any given time

process manufacturing

that part of the procuction process that physically or chemically changes materials

assembly process

that part of the production process that puts together components

ISO 9000

the common name given to quality management and assurance standards

production

the creation of finished goods and services using the factors of production: land, labor capital, entrepreneurship, and knowledge

intermittent process

a production process in which the production run is short and the machines are changed frequently to make diffeerent products

six sigma quality

a quality measure that allows only 3.4 defects per million opportunities

critical path

in a PERT network, the sequence of tasks that takes the longest time to complete

purchasing

the function in a firm that searches for quality material resources, finds the best suppliers, and negotiates the best price for goods and services

facility layout

the physical arrangement of resources (including people) in the production process

facility location

the process of selecting a geographic location for a company's operations

computer-aided manufacturing (CAM)

the use of computers in the manufacturing of products

form utility

the value added by the creation of finished goods and services, such as the value added by taking silicon and making computer chips or putting services together to create a vacation package

enterprise resource planning (ERP)

a computer application that enables multiple firms to manage all of their operations (finance, requirments planning, human resources, and order fulfillment) on the basis of a single, integrated set of corporate data

materials requirement planning (MRP)

a computer-based production management system that uses sales forecasts to make sure that needed parts and materials are available at the right time and place

program evaluation and review technique (PERT)

a method for analyzing the tasks involved in the completing a given project, estimating hte time needed to complete each task, and identifying the minimum time needed to complete the total project

just-in-time (JIT) inventory control

a production process in which a minimum of inventory is kept on the premises and parts, supplies, and other needs are delivered just in time to go on the assembly line

quality

consistently producing what the customer wants while reducing errors before and after delivery to the customer

flexible manufacturing

designing machines to do multiple tasks so that they can produce a variety of products

mass customization

tailoring products to meet the needs of individual customers